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Monday, December 28, 2009

Christmas Leftovers -- Stocking into Red Riding Hood Cape!

This project tickles me to no end! A couple weeks ago I bought a giant felt stocking at the dollar store, simply because it was an awful lot of felt for a buck. I knew I would come up with something to use it for.

I turned it into matching Red Riding Hood capes for my 9-month-old daughter and her dolly!

SUPPLIES:~ giant stocking~ coordinating ribbon

STEP ONE: Turn your stocking inside out and cut away the seam from the top back down to about the middle of the bottom of the "foot."

STEP THREE: After trying the stocking on my daughter and marking with a pin where the top of the hood should start, I laid it out on my sewing table and cut a cape shape.

STEP FOUR: Hem all edges of your cape. Felt will not fray, but it will stretch and distort. Hemming will help eliminate some of that distortion. I simply turned my edge under about 1/4" and sewed.

STEP FIVE: Try your hood on your subject again and mark where the gathering should be.

STEP SIX: Create a casing for your ribbon. I hope this photo helps my explanation! From the right side of your cape, lay your ribbon about 1/2" below your pin line. Take and fold the pin line over the top of your ribbon as shown.

STEP SEVEN: Sew exactly on the edge of your fold. Make sure you don't catch your ribbon in your stitches!

STEP EIGHT: I sewed a few stitches at the top fold of each end of my casing, as shown. I didn't take a photo, but I also sewed down the center back seam of my hood just over the ribbon to ensure it wouldn't be pulled out of the casing.

Tie a bow and you're done!!

I ended up with just enough leftover felt to make a matching cape for my daughter's dolly, creating the same general shape to fit the doll. I didn't create a casing, but simply gathered the neckline to fit the doll and sewed it in place. I then attached two pieces of ribbon in the appropriate spots and tied it on!

Can you tell how pleased she is?Who says babies don't like to play dress-up??

12 comments:

Oh my, your little one is just too cute! Does she really like dolls? Mine doesn't seem to have that "maternal instinct"! Any doll we've ever given her she ends up throwing on the ground- she'd rather push around her doll stroller empty!!!

Your daughter is so cute. She looks so happy! :) I love the giant stocking. I got one and hung it up as is (I know, so tacky! but for some reason it made me smile). I thought it would have been fun to take a Christmas photo with each kid inside a giant stocking.

BRILLIANT!! my toddler was red riding hood this last halloween, and i thought i got a great deal on etsy, paying only 15.00....if only i'd had the forsight and imagination to think of this! i even had one of those huge dollar store stockings from last year!!! i am so impressed!!